human rights

Qatar is hosting the next world cup in 2022. Major sports events are prone to labour and other human rights violations, reason for which it is essential to revisit the situation of the richest country in the world, which combines both an image of luxury and of extreme poverty.

No charge, no trial, no conviction; only hours of torture and interrogation. The Guantanamo Bay Detention Center is a “secret” prison where kidnappings, forced disappearances and degrading prison conditions makes lives of detainees, a living hell. Prisoner rights are mostly not a popular topic of debate. But, can rights be called so if they can be dismissed so effortlessly?

In the last few years, tens of thousands of people have left their homes and crossed the Mediterranean Sea. The media is constantly publishing stories of drowning migrants and of the harsh conditions of detention centres in Southern Europe. At the same time, the attitude towards migration has hardened in many European countries. Countries like Italy, Austria and Hungary have shown that there is very little humanity left.

A decisive action against Poland and Hungary for violating the Rule of Law has been vocally called by many in Brussels and beyond. However, EU Institutions have failed to take effective action against their infants terribles so far. This can be explained by Member States’ reluctance to accept EU intrusion in national constitutional matters and by the Commission’s unwillingness to create tensions with national public opinions.

Nowadays, according to the assessment of the European Disability Forum, about 80 million Europeans have a disability. One in four Europeans has a family member with a disability. Six Europeans out of ten know someone, who has a disability. Thus, the protection of vulnerable people requires urgent attention.